Research? Yeah, right 2
by Lololova
Summary: Sequel to the previous one shot "Research? Yeah right." so if you haven't read that one I recommend you do before you read this one! Also, second chapter is M-rated!
1. Chapter 1

_**A/N** : This is a sequel to my last one shot with the same name, since a lot of you guys asked for it and I felt like I could dig a little deeper into this story I decided to give it a second shot! It'll have two chapters and the second chapter will be M-rated! _  
_Enjoy, xxxx_

* * *

"You ready?" Lanie Parish asked as the detective got into the minibus their captain had rented for the weekend.

Kate Beckett swallowed hard before looking at her best friend with as much confidence as she could muster.

"Of course, why wouldn't I be?" she replied as she fastened the seatbelt.

Lanie and her had laid their butts on two of the seats in the back, mostly in order to not be in the way of the Montgomery family. Roy Montgomery, who also happened to be the captain of the twelfth precinct, had offered to drive the whole way and therefore they had all found it best of his two daughters, Mary and Rebecca, would be in the front seat with him. That way they would be able to look at the nature they would pass on the road to the Hamptons. Evelyn, his wife, had decided to sit behind Roy and jokingly said it was to keep track of his driving, which had the boys chuckling and their captain glaring them down. The boys being detectives Kevin Ryan and Javier Esposito, Kate's brothers in arm as she used to call them. Jenny O'Malley, Ryan's girlfriend, had also tagged along at the writer's suggestion, he'd said he felt unfair to just ask one of the couple to join the rest of the gang. Especially since the whole Montgomery family was joining.

"Because we're going to Castle's house in the Hamptons and apparently you broke up with Demming the same weekend writer-boy left you," Lanie brought her mind back to reality and she could feel her cheeks blush at the mention of the lie she'd told her best friend.

"Oh shut up," she told her friend before she leaned towards the window to observe the city they were about to leave.

Kate had managed to grab the window seat behind Evelyn, and of course her best friend had grabbed the seat beside her, which she guessed would both be a blessing and a curse. Jenny was sitting on the third seat in the back with Ryan sitting right in front of her, which placed Espo in front of Lanie.

"Oh come on, you can't deny the breakup had something to do with him leaving and you missing him," Lanie went on and Kate glanced to meet her captain's eyes in the rear view mirror. _Was he spying on them?!_

"How long of a ride is this?" Kate asked and Evelyn turned in her seat to give her a small smile. _She'd probably heard Lanie's questioning too_.

"Two hours, give or take depending on whether we'll take a break or not," she answered and Kate slumped down.

Not only would it take two hours before she got to meet her writer, but it would without a doubt be two hours filled with an interrogation from her friend. She was actually quite nervous too. She'd told Castle she didn't want them to tell the gang about them during the summer, but it had gone three weeks since she said that. Thinking back to leaving him in the Hamptons Kate bit her lip, remembering the sweet taste of him on her tongue as she kept saying she needed to leave but kept getting drawn back into his kisses. _God_ , she'd never felt so _hooked_ on a guy's kisses before, and she knew Castle gleamed because he somehow just _knew_ the effect he had on her. She'd even called him out on it, said it wasn't attractive when he gloated, but he had just smirked and teased her about practically saying he was attractive. He'd still not quite believed she'd just spent the whole weekend with him, sunbathing by the pool, cooking and eating dinner with him and watched movies until they couldn't keep themselves apart anymore. Shockingly she'd been the one not able to keep her hands to herself, had often been the one to let her hands travel over his body. _Fuck, she shouldn't be thinking about this in the same car as her friends_. A sudden beep had her picking up her phone with a furrowed expression. That was, until she saw who the text was from and she couldn't stop the growing smile from manipulating her lips.

 _'Hey, when will you be here? I can't wait to see you. xx'_

She immediately texted back, saying they almost just now left the city, and had to bite her lip in order to not let out a giggle when he replied with a sad face.

"Kate Beckett texting? Who are you texting?" Lanie questioned and Kate just managed to pull away her phone out of reach before her friend snatched it.

Looking up at her best friend she was suddenly very aware of the boys watching her as well. Even Jenny was looking at her and she cursed her friend for not being quiet. To her relief at least the Montgomery family was too busy chatting for any of them to pay attention to her and her now blushing cheeks.

"None of your business," she replied her friend who narrowed her eyes at her. Kate thought quick and turned her eyes toward the girlfriend they didn't know that much about, other than that their friend was totally smitten by her. "So, Jenny, have you been to the Hamptons before?"

At first the woman looked to Lanie as if she was afraid the Latina would kill her if she didn't quickly tried to find out who was at the other end of the text, but then she just simply answered and to Kate's satisfaction that led to another question from Lanie herself. Kate actually found it quite fun getting to know her brother's girlfriend and was glad she liked her. She seemed like a good match to Ryan. When her cellphone beeped again she made sure none of the others had heard it before sneaking a peek and turning off her sound.

 _'Can I kiss you when you arrive?'_

Kate thought about it. They'd talked about this, had talked about not letting anyone know of their relationship before it could truly be considered a relationship, it was a discussion they'd had almost every night. She's told him her fears, had managed one night when he wouldn't let her go to sleep without telling him why she was so reluctant to telling anyone. He had immediately tried to reassure her, this wasn't just a fling, this wasn't something he would just up and leave. _What they had were something bigger than he had ever come across before_ , he'd promised. This had her doubting she wanted to hide their relationship now that they were about to spend yet another weekend together, she wasn't sure she wanted to sneak around, having to sleep in separate rooms. _No_. She doubted they would be able to trip around the detectives anyway, so _why not just make it official?_

 _'Yes.'_ She sent the message and then put away her phone in order to focus on the conversation her friends were having about horror movies.

* * *

Kate felt her nerves going up when Roy announced they were only ten minutes away from the address Castle had given him, and she knew he was right. She recognized these trees and this road, they were close. By all honesty she was nervous of meeting the writer in person again. _Sure_ , they'd talked every day on the phone, sometimes even face timed, but that was _different_! And the fact that her best friend, her brothers and her _captain_ would be watching her every move wasn't exactly calming her racing heart. _And they'd know_. She's given the writer permission to kiss her and, no matter how excited that knowledge made her, she was a bit afraid of how they would react. She wasn't embarrassed, at least she didn't think so, but it would still feel weird. It was all so new, still! As the driveway came into view and her companions 'ooh'ed in anticipation she tried to focus on not letting her nerves show. Castle would most likely pick up on her nerves the second their lips connected but she hoped to god he wouldn't bring it up in front of everyone else.

"Okay, and why the hell doesn't he live here permanently?" Lanie asked as the house adorned in front of them.

Kate couldn't stop the smile, she'd jokingly asked him if he was rich or something when she'd arrived only three weeks earlier because she, too, couldn't quite understand the spectacular house was his.

 _"Well, I'm not James Patterson rich, but I do okay,"_ had been his response and she's chuckled.

Roy stopped the car in front of the house and Kate felt her heart skip a beat when she saw the front door open to reveal the writer, _her_ writer. It took a while for them all to get out of the car and Kate made sure she took the longest to get out, which wasn't really that hard considering she'd been seated furthest away from the door. Letting the others get out first meant they had already been greeted by hugs once she got out, even Evelyn and the girls got a hug each, and so when she was jumping out the boys were on their way to the trunk of the car in order to get their stuff. This, she hoped, would give them _some_ privacy. When hazels met blues it felt as though the time stopped, and they couldn't stop the smiles from blooming on their lips. Castle was the one to straighten his face first, opening up his arms as if he was going to give her the same kind of hug the others got.

"Beckett, glad you could come," he greeted with mischief glimpsing in his blues.

She felt the eyes of her best friend and she swore the boys was secretly watching as well. All of her friends were most likely holding their breaths in the waiting to see if she would accept the hug or not. Slowly she took a few steps closer to her partner, with a careful smile on her lips.

"Well, who passes up on free food and a mini-vacation?" she questioned with a quirk of her eyebrow.

She heard her friends chuckle and stopped her steps when she was standing right in front of him. Instead of putting his arms around her, like he was indicating, he cupped her cheeks and kissed her lips. Kate heard the gasps and the small squeal, probably Lanie, behind her but didn't care as her lips moved with his. Her eyes were closed as she took him in, let his tongue past her lips in order to taste him and his scent filled her nose. She put her hands on the sides of his hips and let her fingers tangle with the soft material of his shirt. _God, she'd missed this_. Very regretfully they both pulled away, leaving their foreheads touching as they breathed the air they'd denied themselves during the kiss.

"Hi," she whispered with a big grin plastered on her lips.

"Hi," he whispered back and pecked her lips once more before pulling away to give her the most happy smile she'd seen.

"What the hell bro?" Espo interrupted the silence that had fell upon the gang.

Well, except for the Montgomery girls and Evelyn who was talking about the view they had in front of them, not at all moved by the kiss that had happened between the writer and his muse.

Kate felt her cheeks blush but didn't look down but met the confused looks of her friends by turning towards them instead, a smile vibrating on her face.

Shrugging her shoulder she parted her smiling lips. "What? You've seen people kiss before."

Lanie snapped her fingers before waving a scolding, pointed finger at her. "Oh, don't you dare shrug this off! When?! How?!" Her tone was harsh and demanding, threatening even, but nothing could take away the beautifully blissful feeling she had in her belly.

She suddenly felt Castle's fingers trace the inside of her arm, slowly trickling down to her own fingers in order to lock them together, making their palms kiss. Glancing back to him she leaned her shoulder into him, leveling out their positions to stand beside him instead of in front of him as they looked towards the gang.

"I-uh, I didn't go with Demming that weekend," she started explaining and nodded towards Espo. "Something Espo said got to me, and I-ah listened."

The man grunted. "For once."

"Hey!" Kate gave him her look but he simply ignored her.

"And _why on earth_ didn't you tell me?!" Lanie questioned in a scold as she walked up to the couple.

With the look in the Latina's eyes Kate's body automatically prepared for a punch of some kind but before she could react in a defensive way her best friend threw her arms around her in a, _way_ , too tight hug.

"Oh girl! Finally! Now, I want _all_ details."

Kate chuckled, feeling her insides flip at the thought of what _details_ her friend was going to demand, and hugged her back with the one arm not holding onto her writer.

As soon as they broke the embrace it was as though everyone got out of their shock, especially considering Mary and Rebecca asked how the room sharing would work. Castle immediately helped them unload the car and showed everyone to the rooms they would be staying in. Castle had already decided the sisters would share his own daughter's room, since he'd asked the captain if his daughters could consider share a bed there had not been much he'd had to do in order to prepare their room other than change sheets and covers on the queen sized bed. Also, he'd asked Alexis if it was okay, making sure he didn't do anything she'd get mad at considering it was still _her_ room. For the captain and his wife he'd prepared his mother's bedroom for them, and since she had a queen sized bed as well there weren't much he had to prepare there either. Ryan and Jenny would get one of the three guest rooms and Esposito and Lanie would get one each. Castle had, in his mind, thought about lying to the two and say he only had two guest rooms and that they'd need to share one but playing around with the thought he decided he didn't want to get shot nor get his body taken apart by one of those sharp knives that Lanie had in the morgue.

"And where will Kate stay?" Lanie asked as innocent as she could, but there was no mistake on the smirk blooming on her face.

"Shut up," Kate rolled her eyes, of course the smile was still there though.

She couldn't stop smiling! She was so at ease to, _finally_ , be back there. Every night she'd dreamt about being back there, swimming in the pool and having movie nights with her partner before slipping into bed right next to his warm and safe body. Just the thought of it had sent tingles along every inch of her body. Excitement boiling in her veins. _Fuck, she was in deep_.

"She'll be in my room," Castle said with so much pride Kate hit his chest, not too hard though.

"Pack up, we'll meet all of you in the living room when you're done," Kate told her best friend before grabbing Castle's hand with both of hers in order to drag him away from there.

"Mhmm," Kate heard the Latina hum as she led the way towards his bedroom.

As soon as they got inside she gently closed the door behind them to create some privacy before she put her arms around his neck and hugged her body tight to his, but keeping the distance between their faces in order to look at him with what she knew was a foolish grin.

"That went well," she commented, and he hummed with a mirroring grin entering his lips. "So, how's writing going? Did you write last night after we hung up?"

"I did and I can gladly announce I won't have to write a single word this weekend," he said in a promising tone and she narrowed her eyes.

He'd been behind his writing when they got here three weeks ago, it had actually been one of the two bigger reasons as to why he went here. The other being he didn't want to see her with Demming.

"And why is that?" she questioned and his hand tickled her hip, his fingers sneaking under the shirt she was wearing to get skin contact. She both hated and loved how he so easily erupted shivers down her spine, with such a simple touch, and her eyes hardened on him, demanding answer.

"I finished it," he announced and she felt her eyes widen in surprise.

"You..." she felt herself gape at the meaning behind those words, "You finished it? When?!"

He smiled as his fingers wickedly graced her skin under her shirt, carefully nudging the edge of her bra. "I actually finished it two days ago, but I wanted it to be a surprise that I could spend every second with you now that you're here again."

She knew she should be afraid hearing the sentiment in his voice, or at least a bit concerned. They'd only been together for three weeks, only been together-together one weekend during this time due to her work and his, so normally she would be afraid that the words leaving the writer's mouth meant too much. She would be so scared she'd shut down and leave, saying she wasn't sure this was what she wanted and that she thought they maybe shouldn't be together after all. So _, why didn't she feel afraid? Why didn't she panic over the meaning his words held? Why wasn't she running headfirst out of there?_ Instead, she felt a warmth spread over her chest, her mind racing with all of the possibilities awaiting them. They literally had the whole weekend to spend together, and she was planning on taking advantage of every second.

"Too bad we have to share that time with the rest," she said with a fake sigh and an eye roll.

He chuckled at that and while one of his hands were still playing with her skin by the edge of her bra the other sneaked around her in order to pull her body even closer.

"Well, not _all_ that time," he whispered as he leant down and her breath hitched as their lips caught each other in a gentle kiss.

It quickly escalated though, both of them greedy and having missed each other so much more than any of them would ever admit. Kate started pushing her body to his in order to get them to the bed, but they didn't get that far before they heard their friends call out for them. Kate couldn't stop the curse leaving her lips which evoked a chuckle from Castle.

"Tonight, when everyone's sleeping, I promise it'll be worth the wait," he said in a dark, seductive tone and Kate felt her insides clench with the sudden heat taking over her body. "But for now, we gotta give the tour before they think we're doing what we both have in mind right now."

She bit her lower lip and ran her fingers through her hair. "Fine," she gave in and he pecked her lips before taking her hand. Time to entertain the gang.


	2. Chapter 2

_**A/N** : To the guest saying I forgot one family member of Montgomery's: I'm pretty sure "Evan" is _not _his son. There were_ ** _no_** _other Montgomery at his funeral except for Evelyn and his two daughters._ _Maybe he mentions a son once but honestly think that might be a screw up considering there's no son at his funeral, they wouldn't just forget a son on the most important day right? That's my opinion at least._  
 _Anyway, hope you've enjoyed it so far and feel free to leave a comment when you're done. Love you, happy holidays everyone! Until next time, xxxx_

* * *

 **Reminder this chapter is M-rated**.

* * *

Kate could feel her best friend's look on her with her every moment after they came back down. As Castle gave the tour Lanie made sure to take a hold of her hand in order to hold her back, making the two of them walking last of their gang. Kate had a feeling she's get interrogated even before her friend opened her mouth.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she hissed low under her breath. "You know you can trust me to not spill it further."

Kate bit her lower lip, knowing exactly why but not sure how to explain it. "That's... not the problem, I know I can trust you."

"Then why?"

Kate wrinkled her forehead in thought. "It's... I-ah, wasn't sure I wanted... I didn't know if..." with a sigh she shook her head. "I was scared."

Her friend hummed, seemingly pleased by the answer. "Okay, I can understand that. Took you a while to actually get the courage to take a chance."

"Yeah, a chance that might kill me all over again." It was a whisper just under her breath, not really meaning for her friend to hear it, but by the look she was suddenly getting nothing had gone past the M.E.'s ears.

"If you don't take risks you'll never be happy."

Lanie turned to listen to Castle as he led them to the backdoor, it was time to see the pool, and Kate thought of her friend's wise words. As much as she'd like to deny it, say how nothing was worth risking getting broken over, she knew her friend was right. She had never been more happy than she was being with Castle, and if she hadn't risked it by confronting him three weeks ago she never would've felt like this. If she hadn't confronted him and put her heart out there she would've spent the whole summer being miserable and waiting for him to call in the fall. She'd never _admit_ to it, but she knew that's how it would've turned out. Because whether she liked it or not, he's already gotten under her skin. He'd somehow jumped over or crawled through or dug under the walls she'd built up to protect her heart. Even though he'd broken her trust there for a while, breaking her heart because she'd trusted him with a part of her past. How he'd even gotten that part of her life was proof he was already getting past her walls.

"Kate?"

"Hm?" she looked at her partner, who was eyeing her with curious but concerned blues. "Oh, sorry." She excused but he shook his head and she looked around to find they were all by themselves by the pool. _How had the others managed to go without her noticing?!_

"You okay? You looked pretty deep in thought there," he asked as he carefully let one of his hands snatch hers, hooking their fingers together.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking of something Lanie said," she said and could see his concern linger in his blues. "Where did the others go?"

His eyes flickered between hers and she gave him a smile because, really, everything was fine. She was just surprised by how quick he'd stolen her heart, long before she even knew it.

"They're changing into bathing suits. We should probably do the same if we wanna join them," he said with a small nod towards the house and she clasped his free hand in hers in order to pull him closer.

"You sure you can handle me in a bikini without touching me?" she teased with a smirk playing on her lips. She could see him swallow and she bit her lip, knowing how much that disturbed his thoughts.

"I-uh, we-uh, I-yes. I can." He shook his head, trying to gather himself, and she laughed at his obvious struggle.

She stood on her toes to kiss his cheek, thinking it was too risky feeling his lips on hers right in that second, and pulled him with her towards their bedroom. _Yes, their bedroom_.

* * *

Both Rebecca and Mary we're delighted to learn Castle had a popcorn machine and didn't miss the opportunity to take advantage of it when the gang decided to watch a movie together once it got too dark to be outside. They'd taken a small trip to the beach after dinner and stayed there until the sun had gone over the horizon. Kate had felt her friends glare at how easy she grabbed a hold of Castle's hand and didn't let go while they walked along the shore. Kate swore she'd heard her captain mutter something to his wife about how he had hoped his top detective would give the writer a chance. Evelyn had said something about how comfortable she looked and Kate had felt her cheeks heat up at the knowledge of the two talking about her and her partner. She'd noticed Espo saying something to Ryan but hadn't heard exactly what, which she probably should be grateful for. To be honest she just hoped they wouldn't grill her boyfriend on any information, wouldn't threaten him to make sure he didn't hurt her. She knew he wouldn't, not on purpose at least.

"We should get them to bed," Evelyn whispered, breaking the silence in the gang.

Kate glanced away from the movie credits towards the two girls sitting in a big fat boy sack, both soundly asleep with their heads leaning on each other. _Adorable_ , Kate caught herself thinking before both Montgomery and his wife lifted up from the couch in order to rouse their daughters. As soon as they got them up and walking they bid their good nights and walked to the rooms they'd been offered. A sudden snore had Kate's head snapping in its direction, only to see Espo with his head laid back, eyes closed and mouth open.

They gang started chuckling as Lanie smacked his arm to wake him up. "You better not be drooling on the couch," she said in a warning tone and it resulted in another round of chuckles as Espo grunted something incoherent towards the M.E.

"Guess we should head to bed too, got a long day of relaxation by the pool ahead of us," Ryan said and looked a bit more dreamy than Kate had seen him before.

It didn't take long before Kate and Castle were left alone, Lanie giving Kate a knowing look before she disappeared up the stairs, and Kate nuzzled closer into Castle's body. He hugged her into his side with the arm he'd planted around her shoulders during the first part of the movie.

"Today has been a success," he whispered and she nodded with her head against his shoulder.

"Yeah, though I can't help but feel a bit... awkward," she admitted and his lips lingered in her hair.

"How so?"

She thought about it before she answered. "I don't know, feels weird being affectionate in public."

He hummed, his fingers playing with the naked skin of her arm, making her shiver. "I'm just glad you changed your mind about hiding it. I don't know what I would've done if I couldn't touch you."

She smiled at that, she didn't know what she would've done either.

"Speaking of touching," she whispered, pulling away slightly to look at him, and he chuckled as she bit her lip, her belly bubbling with her own laughter.

"Subtle, Beckett, very subtle," he whispered before leaning down to kiss her lips.

She sucked his lower lip into her mouth, scraping her teeth over the skin only to quickly smooth the small pain with he tongue. He moaned and she felt his hand snake up her leg, towards her hip. This was dangerous games, they had guests who could walk down any time, yet they couldn't really find it in themselves to stop. Not until both of them had to pull away in the gasp of air. That's when Castle's arms suddenly went around her in order to pull her into his lap, and before she knew it he was carrying her up the stairs. Kate found it ridiculous how arousing it was knowing they could get caught in the stairs or in the corridor, at the same time she hope on her dear life no one would see their intimate position.

When they got inside their bedroom Castle was quick to lock the door behind them before continuing his way to their bed, gently laying her down in the mattress. His body followed but letting only half of his push into hers, his lips claiming hers again as one of his hands started to wander down the side of her body. His fingers were leaving a hot trail of electricity even through the material of her shirt, and she just barely managed to smother a moan before it escaped her lips. _They needed to be quiet_. His hand sneaked under her shirt, teasing the line of her pants before he suddenly pushed under and there was no way she could've stopped the gasp-mixed moan from slipping past her lips when his fingers came in contact with her wet arousal. His lips left her to let her get air as he kissed down her neck, sucking on her pulse before moving to her clavicle.

His fingers were _wicked_ and she couldn't believe how she hadn't figured so sooner, considering he was a _writer_ and used his fingers every day to type. She had to bite her lip in order to stop the noises from getting out as his other hand trailed under her shirt, teasing her nipple over her bra.

"C-Castle," she half-whispered, half-gasped when one of his fingers pushed inside her, gently stroking her insides as he slid in and out.

 _Oh god_. She wanted to be loud, wanted to let him know _exactly_ what he was doing to her, but she refrained herself as much as she could. Even though there were still so many sounds escaping her, and somewhere in the back of her mind she was praying their guests had fallen to sleep already. He added a second finger and her hips raised from the ecstasy as he continued his arousing assault. It didn't take long before she came in a rush, coating his fingers with her juices. He slowed down and she could feel the smirk he was wearing against her clavicle.

"Shut up," she panted and he chuckled.

"I should say the same to you," he mumbled and she hit the back of his head gently, but couldn't stop the smile from entering her lips.

He retrieved his fingers and she locked eyes with him as he pulled away to lick them off.

"You have way too many clothes on," she stated and he grinned.

"So do you," he countered and they started undressing each other with eager fingers.

Kate might've orgasmed but she could already feel another one build up at the thought of him inside her. She was quick to change their positions first though, stroking the hard member of his to repay him for what he'd done for her. It was, _oh so_ , exciting to hear him moan her name, hear the small gasps he let out at the sensation of her own fingers. She loved how she could get him to be under her mercy. He managed to stop her before she went too far though, gripping her wrists to turn them around again. He kissed her as he intertwined their fingers at the sides of her head, his hips grinding into hers in anticipation of what's to come. Their tongues battled for dominance until it became an arousing dance between two alphas. One of his hands left hers and she heard him pull open his drawer, knowing immediately what he was after. It didn't take long before he'd rolled on the condom and was teasing her entrance.

"Please," she heard herself whimper and if it hadn't been for the bliss she would've blushed at the need visible in the tone of her voice.

He didn't hesitate to push inside her, and they both groaned in unison. Both thankful they were still kissing, their mouths dampening the sounds as they found their rhythm as quickly as they had that first night. Their bodies were moving together, connected as one, and in that moment literally everything else was lost in mind. There were nothing more than them. Just _them_. And the connection they had, which intensified their love making to levels none of them had ever experienced before. They didn't care about anything else, _just them_.

* * *

Kate was first to wake the next morning and after laying a sweet kiss to his naked shoulder she tried to escape his snuggly embrace. She would've loved to stay in bed, cuddle him for a couple hours, but she felt it best to go up and start on the coffee. So, she got dressed and took one last glance at his sleeping form. She had learned he could sleep in pretty easily, whereas she always had some alarm going off at seven am in the morning every day. He looked so peaceful and even though she knew he would question her later as to why she didn't wake him she really couldn't find it in herself to pull him out of his deep slumber.

Walking down to the kitchen she was relieved to find no one else were up yet and instantly brewed the coffee. She grabbed an apple and ate it, thinking she could eat real breakfast once the rest of the gang was up and awake. As she stood leaning on the counter, eating her apple, she thought about the evening before. She hadn't felt this... _amazing_ in years. And all were thanks to the writer. If she hadn't given into her feelings she hadn't felt this open and comfortable as she was. She felt so at ease, not at all as stern and uptight as she usually felt. It was way too soon to say it was love, but Kate still had this lingering feeling it might be just that and she couldn't shake it no matter how much she tried. She hoped that when the time came and her partner was to tell her those three words, she wouldn't run. She didn't want to run. That's what she'd done every damn time. But this time she didn't want to. She wanted to be with him for a really long time. _Maybe forever_.

"Morning," she looked up to see the man, who constantly interrupted her thoughts, step into the kitchen with a smile blooming on his lips.

"Hi," she said softly. _Too soft_. "What are you doing up?"

"You weren't there, I couldn't feel you," he half-complained and she chuckled. He rounded the counter and leaned into her in order to kiss her temple before she managed to straighten up.

"I didn't want to wake you," she defended herself and was pleasantly surprised when he wrapped his hands around her waist to pull her closer to him.

"I know, got lonely without you though," he murmured and she raised on her toes to kiss his sweet lips.

"Mm, you taste like apples," he whispered against her lips and she chuckled, shaking her head.

"Geez, I wonder why," she said sarcastically with a smile on her lips, holding up the non-edible parts of the apple she had been eating.

"That's not breakfast I hope," he said with his eyes narrowed on her and she rolled her eyes.

"No, figured we could make breakfast together, pancakes, bacon, scrambled eggs, what do you say?" she suggested and his lips turned up into a big grin.

"Absolutely! But first," he added and leant down again, claiming her lips in a gentle kiss.

Once they broke apart they started on the breakfast, figuring they'd had to make a ton of it in order to make sure everyone got a piece of everything. Before Kate knew it they were dancing around each other, making everything together without the need to actually speak. She couldn't help but notice the domesticity in it all. _When had that begun?_ None of them could keep their hands completely for themselves though, carefully brushing their fingers across the other's back each time they pass. Once they became still, standing beside each other as they waited for the last of the pancakes to be done, Kate put her hand in his back pocket as she leaned her head to his shoulder.

"When do you think they'll be up?" Castle asked and she felt his lips land in her hair.

"I thought Kev and Javi would be up considering our work. Lanie and Roy too but I guess not." She shrugged her shoulders and he hummed.

"And you're back at work again on Monday?" His tone was a bit saddened and she couldn't help but feel the same.

They hadn't been apart for this long since he first started shadowing her and, even though she'd dreamt heavenly dreams of him not following her in the beginning of their partnership, she dreaded not having him around for the rest of the summer.

"Yeah," she murmured and whipped around at the sudden clearing of a throat behind them.

It was Jenny and Ryan who'd been the first people showing up. After that it didn't take long before everyone started dropping down one by one, everyone equally as surprised by the breakfast buffet the writer and his muse had made. Espo and Ryan had immediately started teasing on how they never would've figured Beckett for a cook and Kate immediately took her revenge by throwing one napkin each on them. But truthfully, she had never revealed her cooking skills, and if it hadn't been for Castle she probably never would've let her boys know. They all enjoyed breakfast and talked about the things they wanted to do during their free day. Kate didn't really pay attention to what was chosen for their day, as long as she would be able to spend that time with her writer she didn't really care what they ended up doing.

"I heard you all had a great night," Lanie said suddenly with a side glance to Kate and immediately had her choking on the sip of coffee she'd unfortunately taken in just at that moment. "Where did you buy those beds, writer-boy?" she asked but Kate knew that was not at all what she'd had in mind.

 _Oh god_. _Had they been that loud?!_ Castle only chuckled, not disturbed at all at the thought of their guests having heard them, and answered as if it was the most ordinary conversation ever. Which, to an outsider, it would sound like. Kate felt her cheeks blush as she coughed and all she wanted to do was melt through the ground.

"Can we go the the beach today? I wanna collect some of those shells we saw yesterday," Rebecca asked and Mary nodded in agreement as they looked towards their parents.

 _At least those two had no idea what was going on_. Lanie was smirking with evil joy and Kate narrowed her eyes at her best friend. Why couldn't she just have let her live in the unknowing bliss? She almost jumped at the sudden hand landing on her thigh under the table and she looked at her writer. He gave her a knowing look along with a reassuring smile and a hug to her thigh, most likely trying to calm down the embarrassment that filled her body. Why didn't it embarrass him though? Why didn't his cheeks blush even the slightest?

As her thoughts kept circling around her head the conversation went on and her embarrassment disappeared somewhere along the time. Before she knew it they were all pitching in to clean up in order for them to get started on their day. Due to different wants and needs they decided to split up a bit, the Montgomery family would go to the beach while Jenny and Lanie decided on going into town to see what shopping alternatives there were. Espo and Ryan wanted to relax by the pool with beers in their hands. Lanie had tried to get Kate to come with them, saying they could make a ladies day out of it, but she managed to sneak herself out of it. She never really enjoyed shopping that much and she pretended to have the beginning of a headache. A headache she was pretty sure everyone saw through as the want to stay with Castle. Her best friend gave her a warm smile before knocking off her tries.

"So, what do you wanna do then?" Castle asked when they were suddenly all alone, having waved off the rest of their friends.

"I don't know," she shrugged her shoulders. "Got any suggestions?"

She observed him thinking for a bit, that adorable wrinkle appearing between his eyes, and his eyes lit up at a sudden idea. "Oh! I know!"

She waited, patiently held her mouth for him to tell her, but it didn't came and so she mouthed her question. "What?"

"Surprise," he grinned and she groaned. _She hated surprises_.

She turned out to love it. Not far from his house, along the beach but on the opposite direction the Montgomery family had gone, was a cave. A _hidden_ cave. And Kate's mouth was agape as she took in the beautiful place.

"Are those... crystals?" she questioned with admiration in her tone.

"I'm actually not sure what they are, only that they glisten and are stunning," Castle admitted and when she glanced at him she could see he wasn't watching the crystals. He was watching her, like always. "Just like you."

She rolled her eyes at that, but the wide smile on her lips definitely gave away how much she loved this. It was absolutely stunning and... _love?_ She didn't get long to think about it because she was distracted by his arms coming around her to hug her from behind.

"I mean it," he whispered in her ear before kissing it slightly. "You're beautiful."

"How did you find this cave?" she asked instead, trying to get rid of the sudden blush reappearing on her cheeks.

He squeezed her once more before letting go to grab her hand, twining their fingers and pull her towards a few rocks which almost looks like they were put where they were in order for people to sit on them. Wouldn't surprise her if he moved them.

"Me and Alexis found this when we explored every inch of our new summer home. She and mother are the only ones who knows about it, unless someone else has found it of course."

She bit her lip at that, looked around them again. "So... no Gina? No Meredith?" It was barely a whisper, not sure she wanted to know the answer but feeling the question slip before she could approve it.

"No, god no!" He shook his head and she felt utter shock fill her as she realized what that meant.

 _She was the first woman he brought here_. After a while of silence she snuggled into his side, her face looking at him as she rested her jaw on his shoulder. The second he looked at her she pushed a little closer to peck his lips with a smile stuck on her own.

"Thanks," she whispered and he grinned.

"Always," he answered and leaned closer to kiss her again. "Oh, and I got another surprise."

She couldn't help another groan, when would he realize she didn't like surprises? _He probably already knew, he just enjoyed it too much_.

"I'm coming with you back to the city tomorrow," he revealed and she felt her belly flip.

"Really?!" she couldn't hide the excitement even if she wanted to and when he nodded she threw her hands around his neck to hug him tight.

He would follow her back. She wouldn't have to miss him the rest of the summer. Because he would be right there! By her side! Like always.

 _THE END_


End file.
